Monrovia: World Bank Liberia Country Manager Georgia Wallen framed Liberia’s micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as “bright stars and beacons of hope” while detailing a private sector dominated by survivalist ventures that trap workers in poverty. Her remarks, delivered Tuesday at the revived National MSME Conference and Trade Fair, served as both a rallying cry and a strategic blueprint for transforming Liberia’s economic engine.
Addressing a hall of government officials, including the Minister of State for Presidential Affairs and the Minister of Commerce and Industry, alongside hundreds of entrepreneurs, Wallen’s message was clear: celebrating the resilience of MSMEs is not enough. The data, she revealed, demands urgent, collaborative action to convert ubiquitous micro-enterprises into generators of dignified work.
“Our recent Liberia Economic Update on jobs highlights three realities,” Wallen stated, outlining a triad of challenges underpinning the country’s employment crisis. “First, Liberia’s private sector is dominated by MSMEs—90 percent are micro-firms employing between one and eight people. Second, this dominance keeps most of Liberia’s working population in low-wage, low-productive, and vulnerable employment. Third, young people who have strived hard to attain skills and education are often significantly underemployed.”
The consequence, she argued, is a system where the very sector hailed as the economy’s backbone is structurally incapable of providing the “quality jobs needed to offer meaningful wages and stability.” This analysis set the stage for her central thesis: realizing Liberia’s potential requires moving beyond recognition to systematically dismantle the barriers stifling growth.
Wallen’s two years of crisscrossing counties provided a human counterpoint to the statistics. “I have encountered many inspiring ventures,” she shared, “many led by women and by young people. Behind each venture is a determined entrepreneur contributing to national development.” This firsthand experience, she suggested, is what makes the current stagnation not just an economic failure, but a personal one for thousands striving for a better life.
The World Bank’s response, as outlined by Wallen, is a multi-pronged attack on the constraints facing MSMEs, anchored in its new Country Partnership Framework focused on building foundations for “more and better jobs.” The flagship **Liberia Investment, Finance and Trade (LIFT) Project** is deploying a suite of interventions:
* **Unlocking Finance:** Directly channeling $6.5 million to MSMEs through eight local financial institutions, while simultaneously strengthening credit risk systems and the movable collateral registry to help lenders better serve smaller businesses.
* **Building Capability:** Investing over $3.5 million in training and technical assistance to prepare MSMEs for investment and scaling.
* **Reforming Systems:** Supporting government reforms to simplify business formalization, ease cross-border trade, and attract investment that intentionally integrates Liberian MSMEs via a supplier development portal.
Acknowledging that blanket solutions are insufficient, Wallen highlighted targeted initiatives for the most dynamic yet constrained demographics. The **Liberia Women Empowerment Project** and the **REALISE Project** are expanding tailored training, mentoring, and financing specifically for enterprises led by women and youth. “So micro and small enterprises led by women and youth can see and seize a pathway to growth,” she explained.
The conference itself, she urged, must be the catalyst for accountability. “It is an excellent opportunity to align on a concise action list for the next 12 months,” Wallen challenged the assembly, “so when we gather again next year we can point to tangible strides and reforms.”
Her closing words were reserved for the entrepreneurs in the room, a direct appeal to the “bright stars” she opened by praising. Invoking the Minister of Commerce’s call to “Believe in Liberia’s greatness!”, she urged them to “keep daring, keep learning, and keep focused.” She pointed to a living example on the stage: **Mahmoud Johnson, CEO of J‑Palm**, the keynote speaker and a Liberian success story whose journey from a small operation to a nationally recognized brand embodies the scaling ambition the World Bank seeks to foster.
“As he reaches for higher heights,” Wallen concluded, “let us be inspired by what has been achieved—and celebrate the success.”
The speech ultimately wove a narrative of cautious optimism. It acknowledged the profound structural hurdles detailed in the World Bank’s own data, while insisting that the determination witnessed in Liberia’s counties, combined with focused partnership and reform, can light a path forward. The challenge now lies in whether the collective “action list” forged in the conference’s wake can turn today’s beacons of hope into tomorrow’s engines of prosperity.
